In the Punk Domestics Kitchen

My entire goal with Punk Domestics is to inspire people into action. I hope that, by seeing what others are doing out there in their own kitchens, you, the reader, will decide to drop everything that very minute and gather your jars, or salt that meat, or whip up a batch of cheese simply because you can.

This works on me, too. I don't just do this for the greater good. I draw inspiration every day from the posts that run on the site. Here's a few things I've got going on in my own kitchen right now:

Nocino
I had the opportunity to go down to my friend Tabitha Stroup's place in the Santa Cruz mountains, where she has three tremendous black walnut trees. They are just now in their green state, the right size and softness to make nocino, the Italian liqueur. The walnuts were so perfect.

Vin de Noix
I thought I grabbed a modest number of walnuts, but it turned out to be way more than needed, so I also started a batch of vin de noix, another liqueur, this time from France, with wine as the base. Last year's batch was delicious, so I have high hopes for this one, using Sonia Bañuelos de Siguenza's recipe.

Walnut Butter
Last year, Tabitha also sent me home with a bunch of mature, cured walnuts, and I still have plenty of them. These are perhaps the best walnuts I've ever had, with more sweetness than commercial nuts. Perhaps I'll use Sonia's recipe to turn the remainder into this delicious walnut butter, using more of the vin de noix.

Grape Leaves
Tabitha's house is on a small vineyard. The leaves are just at the perfect size right now, and the vines needed trimming anyway, so I grabbed a bunch. Initially I planned to use them for crisping pickles, but I may just put them up to make dolmades later.

Pomelocello
I recently came by an absurdly huge pomelo -- seriously, bigger than my head. Having made many variations on limoncello with various citrus, I knew that was my first priority.

Pomelo Pectin Stock
See? I told you, bigger than my head. And of course, being a pomelo, it's almost all rind. So after I used the zest and flesh for my 'cello, I reached out the the community to get tips on making pectin stock from citrus rind. Someone on the Facebook page steered me to this recipe, and it worked.

Dilly Beans
Today's project is a batch of dilly beans. These are perhaps my favorite pickles, crisp, spicy and tangy. I could eat an entire jarful.